THE ROLE OF CIRCUMSTANCES IN HUMAN ACTION ACCORDING TO AQUINAS The Hierarchy of Circumstances in Moral Evaluation

Abstract

Circumstances are the attendant properties of human action. Aquinas asserts that the end and object are the main factors in determining the moral value of human action, however, he also states that circumstances can play a role in evaluating moral actions. The purpose of this paper is to show how Aquinas develops a moral theory that allows the circumstances of human action to play a role in the specification human actions. Specific circumstances overlap with the end and object of human action and individual circumstances can become a main feature of human action. Circumstances have the potential to influence moral specification.